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Resolve to Be Healthy in 2002
The American Council on Science and Health offers you 12 New Year's
resolutions to help you increase your chances of having a healthy and happy
2002.
Focus your efforts on things that matter.
In the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks and anthrax
bioterrorism, Americans are concerned about new, real threats to their health
and safety. Now, more than ever, it is important that we distinguish between
risks that are real and can be lessened by individuals' actions, and those that
are theoretical, very small, or beyond our control. While the risk of receiving
an anthrax-laden letter is real, it is very small for the great majority of
people. It can thus be helpful to maintain a heightened alertness to strangely
addressed mail, for example, but a panicked hoarding of anti-anthrax antibiotics
will not be. Similarly, worrying about exposures to trace amounts of synthetic
chemicals in the environment will not have a significant positive impact on
health, while attention to lifestyle factors can certainly do so. The American
Council on Science and Health is dedicated to helping you set priorities for a
healthy and long life. When it comes to achieving long life and good health, we
largely determine our own fate. As we get ready to start a new year, we can do
ourselves the most good by improving important health-related aspects of our
lifestyles -such as quitting smoking (or, better, not starting in the first
place) and engaging in regular exercise-and by taking advantage of technology
that protects us against health and safety hazards-such as immunizations and
bicycle helmets. To make the best health choices resolve to sift carefully
through all the health advice that surrounds all of us and focus our efforts on
the things that really matter.
Don't smoke.
If you don't smoke, don't start. If you do smoke, resolve to quit this year.
Half of all adults who once smoked cigarettes have kicked the habit. You can,
too.
This is our major New Year's resolution because cigarette smoking is the number
one cause of preventable deaths in this country. Tobacco use is responsible for
almost half a million deaths in the U.S. each year and more than $50 billion in
medical expenditures. Half of all lifelong smokers die of a smoking-related
disease.
So don't let another year go up in smoke. Start the New Year smoke-free.
Separate drinking and driving.
Never drink and drive. Equally important, never ride as a passenger in a car
driven by someone who has been drinking alcohol.
Thirty-nine percent of all traffic fatalities in the U.S. are
alcohol-related. More than 16,000 Americans are killed each year in
alcohol-related crashes, and more than 327,000 are injured. Although the number
of alcohol-related traffic deaths has dropped by about 30% since the late 1980s,
there's still plenty of room for improvement. There are more than 120 million
episodes of impaired driving in the U.S. every year. Every one of these episodes
puts people's lives at risk.
So if you plan to drink, make safe transportation arrangements. If no designated
driver is available, use mass transit or call a taxi.
If you drink alcoholic beverages, keep your intake moderate.
Moderate drinking is OK for most adults. If you're middle-aged or older, it may
even benefit your health by reducing your risk of heart disease. What's
moderate? For men age 65 and under, the limit is two drinks per day; for men
over 65 and women of all ages, it's one drink per day.
Heavy drinking (that is, drinking that goes beyond the limits of moderation)
is not healthful. The heavy drinking of alcohol is associated with increased
risks of injury, liver disease, heart disease, high blood pressure, and several
types of cancer. It's responsible for more than 100,000 deaths in the U.S. each
year.
Take your body to the shop for preventive maintenance.
Your car comes equipped with a maintenance schedule. So does your body.
Health authorities recommend that all adults and children should have certain
types of preventive care-such as screening tests and immunizations-on a regular
schedule. The timing of these services depends on your body's "model" and
"mileage" (that is, your sex and age).
Unfortunately, many Americans have fallen way behind on their maintenance
schedules. For example, colon cancer screening is recommended for everyone over
the age of 50-but 59% of men and women in this age group have not been tested.
Everyone over the age of 65 should receive a single immunization against
penumococcal pneumonia and an annual flu shot-but more than a third of all
Americans in this age group didn't get a flu shot last year, and more than 60%
have never received the penumococcal vaccine.
If you haven't been taking routine care of your body (or your child's body),
resolve to make an appointment with your doctor this year to find out what
preventive services are recommended. And then follow up by getting the necessary
tests and immunizations.
Eat a healthy diet. Handle foods safely. Avoid obesity.
The keys to good nutrition are variety, moderation, and balance. There are
no "good" or "bad" foods-but there certainly are "good" and "bad" diets.
Many people worry too much about hypothetical hazards from traces of
pesticides or other chemical residues in food, while paying too little attention
to more important food-related risks.
One of the most important of these risks is contamination by microorganisms.
Diseases caused by microorganisms in food cause an estimated 5,000 deaths,
325,000 serious illnesses, and 76 million cases of gastrointestinal illness in
the U.S. each year.
To keep foods safe, follow the four principles of the President's National
Food Safety Initiative: 1) Clean: Wash hands and surfaces often. 2) Separate:
Don't cross-contaminate. 3) Cook: Cook to proper temperatures. 4) Chill:
refrigerate promptly.
Obesity is another important food-related health issue. More than 50% of
U.S. adults are overweight, and 22% are obese (meaning that they weigh at least
30% more than they should). The proportion of the population that is overweight
has been increasing rapidly in the U.S. for the past 20 years. Excess weight is
associated with increased risks of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure,
stroke, arthritis, gallbladder disease, and some types of cancer.
To help reduce excess weight and to maintain a healthy weight, experts
recommend that you eat a balanced diet, reduce your total calorie intake, eat
less fat, and exercise regularly.
Exercise regularly-with caution.
Regular exercise will help you control your weight, improve your overall
health, and reduce your risk of medical problems such as heart disease and
osteoporosis. To get the most benefit, you should exercise for at least 20
minutes three times a week.
When you exercise, make sure to take all the safety precautions that are
recommended for the activities that you choose. It's especially important to
always wear a helmet while cycling or skating. Wearing a bicycle helmet can
reduce your risk of head injury by 85%. Other safety equipment, such as knee
pads and wrist guards, can also reduce your risk of injury.
Although exercise is beneficial for almost everyone, some people need to
consult a doctor to find out what level and types of physical activities are
safe for them. This precaution is especially important for pregnant women,
people who have a medical condition that might be aggravated by exercise (such
as arthritis or angina), and people who are taking any type of medication
(especially medicines for high blood pressure or heart disease).
Protect yourself against AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
The best ways to protect yourself against AIDS are to:
Never use a non-sterile needle to inject anything into your body.
Either abstain from sex or have sex only with an uninfected partner in a
mutually monogamous relationship. If you choose to have multiple sex partners
(or your partner does), you can reduce your risk of AIDS and other sexually
transmitted diseases in the following ways:
Ask all prospective sexual partners to be tested for sexually transmitted
infections.
Use condoms properly and consistently.
Avoid sexual intercourse with people who engage in high-risk behaviors such as
unprotected sex or intravenous drug use.
Check out "alternative" practices with your doctor.
More than 40% of Americans use some kind of "alternative" therapy, such as
herbal medicine, massage, chiropractic, or aromatherapy. Some people think that
all alternative practices are harmless, but this isn't necessarily
true-especially for people with special medical concerns. For example, people
with Parkinson's disease should never take the herb kava-kava because it can
worsen their disease symptoms. People with osteoporosis should not receive
chiropractic therapy because the manipulation could cause a fracture. People who
take the herb ginkgo biloba while also taking an anticoagulant drug can develop
bleeding problems.
Even if an alternative therapy isn't dangerous in itself, it can hurt you if you
use it as a substitute for proper medical care. Most alternatives have not been
proven effective, and many don't work at all. If your problem turns out to be
serious, you could endanger your health-or even your life-by experimenting with
unproven therapies instead of seeing a physician promptly.
If you use alternative therapies, you should let your medical doctor know.
However, more than 60% of Americans who use alternative methods don't do this.
To find out whether any alternative practices you would like to try are safe for
you, resolve that you will always check out these methods with your doctor
before you start.
Use automobile safety devices every time.
Seat belts save more than 10,000 lives a year in the U.S. A recent survey
showed that 70% of all Americans now buckle up-a 12% increase since 1994. That's
good, but it could be better. This year, resolve that everyone in your car will
be buckled into the proper restraint every time. That means seat belts for
adults, booster seats (in the rear seat) for older children, and properly
installed safety seats (in the rear seat) for small children and infants.
Protect your dental health.
You know that you can help keep your teeth healthy by brushing and flossing,
getting regular dental care, using fluoride as recommended by your doctor or
dentist, eating balanced meals, and limiting snacks. While most people know
this, here's something you may not know: More than two million teeth are knocked
out every year, many of them from sports-related injuries. Many of these
injuries could have been avoided if the person was wearing a mouth protector. So
if you play sports that involve a risk of mouth injury, resolve to wear a
mouthguard every time.
Install and maintain a working smoke detector.
Smoke detectors save lives. They're your best protection against death or injury
in a nighttime fire in your home. But they won't protect you if they're not
working. The American Red Cross recommends that you test your smoke detectors
once a month, replace the batteries at least once a year, and replace the
detectors themselves every ten years. You can also protect your family from fire
by planning at least two escape routes from every room in your home and making
sure that all family members know how to use them.
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